Black Clover: Tales of Blood
by whitetiger522
Summary: This is the story of a boy who dreams to one day become a magic knight who can erase fear itself, and all the challenges such an endeavor will entail.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: The First Step

* * *

 _Once Upon a time, a demon of great evil power once threatened all of humanity. However, a wizard of great power slayed it, freeing the world of it's malice. This man became the wizard king, and he established the magic knights, an order devoted to the protection of the clover kingdom._

* * *

Our story begins with the light of the morning sun rising from east. The light shone through the window of a young boy. His name, is Shezu Ichor.

"SHEZU, WAKE UP!"

It was the cry of his mother that woke the young man from his slumber. Rubbing his eyes open, and ruffling his purplish-pink hair into place, shezu finally opened his eyes to see the light outside his window. With a small smile slowly forming across his face, only one though came to him.

" _Today's the day."_

* * *

Shuffling down the stairs, Shezu came down the in his outfit of a dark green shirt, red pants, and brown leather shoes. The boy had some very odd features about his body. Sans the dark purplish-pink hair, he had black eyes, a good height, and a thin frame. He came into the kitchen where he met his mother and father. Carmilla Ichor, shezu's mother, wearing a lovely dark yellow dress and cooking breakfast at the stove. She had the same Dark purplish-pink hair as her son, but it was offset with green eyes instead of black. Then, helping set the table, was Eurale Ichor, Shezu's father. He was dressed in a white shirt with a brown vest and similarly colored pants with black leather shoes at the end. He had sandy brown hair,something that contrasted **heavily** with his son's, but did share the same black eyes that he had.

"Hey there son, how's it going?"

"Alright dad, thanks for asking," Shezu replied with his usual timid voice.

"Slept in pretty late didn't you?" Chided Carmilla with a smile, "Couldn't sleep last night?"

"Yeah, was a bit too excited about today," Replied Shezu, in his usual quiet voice.

Sitting down at the table, the entire Ichor family began to eat, and discuss the day's events.

"So son," began the father, "you excited to get your grimoire today?"

"Yeah, of course I am," Shezu replied with a smile on his face.

"Hmph, glad to hear it," Eurale continued, "you know, me and your mother have a bet going on on which of our magic power your going to inherent."

"R-really?"

"Yes, really," the mother interjected, "I think you inherited your father's water magic, while your father thinks you inherited my fire magic."

Shezu didn't have a response to this, he just thought about the implications of how either having fire or water magic would affect his life...and his dream.

* * *

Eurale was cleaning the dishes with his water magic while Carmilla was setting up her satchel for work. Shezu on the other hand was staring out the window, deep in thought. Outside, the firefly dandelion fluffs dance on the winds. It was the sign that every child of fifteen years looked out for, because it was the sign that they were about to be awarded their grimoires. Every person that lives can someone **some** amount of magic, however it is with a grimoire that their full magical potential can be truly realized. Looking down at his hands, Shezu concentrated as hard as he could, trying to summon every ounce of mana he could. As he concentrated waves of energy started to manifest around his hands, but that was all that manifested. There were four basic elements when it came to magic, earth, fire, wind, and water. Along with the four basic elements, magic could also create other substance such as smoke our lightning. But Shezu was a boy who couldn't even do that. He could manifest mana around his hands, and that was about it. The most that ability could do was telepathically control and create solid objects, but no more. This is what Shezu feared the most, that after given his grimoire, his greatest ability would be being able to churn butter without touching the handle. These abilities, while convenient, wouldn't help him realize his dream, his want to become a magic knight.

* * *

Before Shezu lived in his current home, his family lived in a small village called dresden, a place located in the commoner realm. He was a child of five years old, when he saw his entire village start burning. He still remembers the screaming people running for their lives, the ash and embers in the air, and the whoops and hollers of the people causing it all. They were a bandit group called the Flames of Avalon, a group of mage who **all** used flame magic. They were a group known for ransacking villages and burning everything down, leaving no trace, including the people. They would set fire to the houses first, then enter and steal everything of value. After all, if the flames ever started to engulf them, they could simply manipulate them away with their magic. Shezu remembers being held tight by his mother and his father running beside her. Luckily, they were at the far end of the village when the raid started, so that by the time the screaming started they could get a head start. But the Flames of Avalon work fast, and as soon as the hunt for valuables ended, the hunt for witnesses began.

"Alright boys, lets hunt em down, DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES!"

The bandits were hot on their heels, Shezu could even see shots of flame magic being shot into the air. It was simply meant to scare the villagers, to instill them with fear to break their spirits, but it was working. They were getting closer and closer, and it seemed like it was the end of the line for all of them, but then, an eagle of lightning came swooping down from the sky, along with many magic knights on broomsticks. It was then a battle of magic began. Water, wind, earth and various other elements battling the bandits flames. This gave the villagers time to escape to the nearest hill for safety, and enough time for Shezu to see the battle bellow. He saw the magic knights fight back and eventually defeat every bandit there, and it was then that he knew what he wanted to be. Before the knights came, fear seemed to envelope Shezu, his family, and everyone around them. It was a crushing, suffocating feeling that he would never forget for as long as he lived. But, after seeing the magic knights come to his villages rescue, it was like all the fear was swept away, and was replaced with a feeling of hope that lightened everyone's hearts. That day. he swore to himself that he would become a magic knight, and be the kind of person who could erase fear from the hearts of people themselves.

* * *

But, with his level of magic, it seemed that that dream would only remain in the clouds. Magic knights at the very **least** needed to have an elemental nature in order to fight. Simply moving an object with one's magic wasn't going to be enough. Both of Shezu's parents notice their son's look of concern, and seeked to consul him.

"Don't worry son," said Carmilla with a warm voice and smile, "no matter what happens, we will be happy for you."

"Yeah, don't worry about it kid," chimed in Eurale, "we know that no matter what happens, you're going to do amazing things."

Shezu looked at both his smiling parents, and made sure to return their grins in equal measure. Soon, they all left their home. Carmilla went to the village inn, Eurale went to the water wheel, while Shezu went to the grimoire tower, to see what destiny had in store for him.

 **NOTES:**

Well, this is my first official fanfic I have ever written. You know the drill, feel free to criticize as much as you want, (so long as you don't say the reason it sucks is because it sucks) or just leave a simple kudo if it pleases you. This story will **mostly** stick to canon but will take some twists and turns while introducing some new characters. Hope you enjoy the ride.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: The Power Awakens

* * *

Shezu was a very helpful and polite young man, though he did possess a great amount of shyness to the same extent. Very nervous and submissive most of the time, his shuffling footsteps usually betrayed his socially awkward personality. The fact that his abilities didn't seem powerful enough to have much confidence in also didn't help the boy's low self-esteem. Though despite these personality traits, if Shezu found himself in odd situations, overreacting was not exactly out of the question for him. The only time the boy became relaxed and happy in demeanor was with his mother and father, the only people who seemed to bring any peace to his timid heart.

As he made his way to the grimoire tower, was soon joined by dozens of other fifteen year olds, all on their way to the same place. The tower itself was a large cylindrical building of stone, with column upon column stacking up on one another. Past the large wooden doors was a marble floor with a three leaf clover design, and an identical design on the ceiling that let light into the building. But the most notable feature of the tower was the fact that there were thousands, if not millions of grimoire on shelves that stacked upon each other to incredible heights. The grimoire tower was, in essence, a giant library containing a seemingly endless supply of books. It was here where Shezu would receive the key to his future that would unlock the door to his possibilities for it. All the young men and women crowded around the center of the floor. There was more than enough room to allow everyone in, along with any family members who wished to observed the ceremony. As soon as it appeared everyone arrived, a man in robes and a long pointy hat with a grey beard took to the podium, addressing the crowd.

" Good evening ladies and gentleman," spook the old man, his voice amplified by the small floating orb in front of him.

"Today, each of you will take the next step on your life's journey. I wish you all faith, hope, and love. I am the one responsible for this grimoire tower, and as such will be presiding over the ceremony today."

Saying that Shezu had butterflies in his stomach would be an understatement, it was more like he had jumping frogs that were ricocheting off the walls.

" _What would his grimoire look like? Would it be fancy? What would happen after he got it?"_

These questions race through his mind, and the anticipation was torture at this point.

"Now then," the old man continued, "let us get on with it, shall we?"

Suddenly, random grimoires on the shelves started to glow, mana surrounding them.

"The awarding of the grimoires!"

As the keeper of the tower said the words, the books literally started flying off the shelves. Each book the flew was covered in a different color of mana, from bright blue to vivacious violet, heading straight to their owners. As each person received their grimoire, shouts of joy or disappointment could be here all around.

"Man, look at it!"

"Hah, mines bigger!"

"Yeah, well min thicker!"

"Why is mine so small!"

Each child could hardly contain their excitement, and soon began planning what to do next with their live. Some stated the desire to go to the city, others wanted to inherit the family business, while others simply wanted to enjoy the moment. However, the occasion was brought to a pause when a voice shouted something… quite odd.

"Mine's not coming!"

Everyone, including Shezu, looked over to see who the voice belonged to. This voice belonged to a short, muscular boy with green eyes and silver hair. He was kneeling down on one knee, looking up with arms wide open, as if expecting an angel to come down from heaven itself. However, it never did. No grimoire was coming to claim the green-eyed boy as its own. He just kneeled their, waiting for something that would never come.

Everyone had a moment of silence. Things like this never happened. As such, everyone looked to the the master of the tower, hoping his age beget some insight. His response was, however, equally surprising.

"Urm...try again next year?"

"WHAAAAT!" shouted the boy in full confusion.

Whether it was the response of the old man, or the reaction of the young boy, the group inside the tower proceeded to burst out into laughter at the spectacle. However, there was one among the group of fifteen year olds that wasn't laughing, That, was Shezu. Shezu wasn't inherently the kind of person to laugh at other people's misfortune. He could enjoy a practical joke as much as anyone else, but he could never bring himself to laugh at something like this. After all, he was in the same boat. His grimoire hadn't come either. This worried him, and as such, that worry led him into a full panic attack.

" _What had happened? Was his power really that weak? What was he going to do?"_

This only increased as as soon as the green-eyed boy admitted he had not received a grimoire, a bright light soon enveloped the entire chamber. This light belonged to a grimoire that floated in front of a black-haired, brown-eyed boy of slender build. The grimoire had four clovers on it, and the only other time a grimoire of that nature had been given to someone, it had been given to the first wizard king himself. The crowd started, and gasped at amazement that the boy received such a gift.

"What a minute, isn't he the orphan boy from the church?"

"Yeah, he is! That's also the church where that guy with no grimoire comes from too right?"

"Yeah, you're right!"

The fact that such a sign of greatness presented itself to a peasant orphan made the situation even more unbelievable. The words the boy said next, only added to it.

"I...will be the next wizard king."

This sent the crowd into a frenzy. The only people who ever became the wizard king were royals who were bred for such a position. A peasant claiming such a title, could flip the rules of society upside down, and give a ray of hope for those on the bottom who dreamed of something more. The crowd cheered that such a ray presented itself. But once again Shezu didn't join in the revelry. He was shocked, to be sure, but his fear of not receiving a grimoire was greater than his surprise. It still hadn't presented itself to him, and thus made the boy fear for the worse. However, all was not lost. Shezu looked up one last time in desperation to see if there was any chance that his own grimoire was there. Thankfully, it was. Straining his eyes he could see a book covered in bright red mana slowly making its way across the room, the people were so busy with the reveal of the four-leafed clover grimoire that no one noticed. No one, that is, except for Shezu. Looking around to see if it was fate itself trying to play a prank on him, he tried to see if the grimoire was heading to anyone else but him. But no, it made a beeline for its true owner. His name, was Shezu Ichor. Floating towards him, the young man reached out and grabbed, taking measure of what was in front of him. It was a medium sized book of average thickness, but what was notable about it was the design. The cover was black velvet, that had red silk laced throughout it, The designs were intricate and graceful, and at the center of it all, was a red three-leafed clover. Shezu held the book to his chest, almost crying tears of joy. His dream seemed one step closer to reality.

 **NOTES:**

Well, second chapter done. Sorry if things seem to be progressing slowly, but trust me, the payoff will be...interesting.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Crimson Twilight

* * *

 _At a border station between the Clover kingdom and Diamond kingdom._

Forte Gris, a man with short, shaggy hair, and a scar beneath his right eye, was looking out through a spyglass at the surrounding area. The station he was positioned at was a shabby old fort of wood. The most it could house were two people, and those were the aforementioned Forte, a magic knight from the Crimson Lion squad. The other was a man named Verrater Geld, a man from the Coral Peacocks, a bald knight with intricate designs tattooed on his head as if feathers took the place of his hair.

"Hey there Gris," called Verrater, "All quiet on the homefront?"

"Yeah, seems like we aren't going to see any action today."

"Ah shame, I was hoping I could take down a Diamond general today and earn myself a nice little permotion."

"Heh, wouldn't we all."

Handing the spyglass over to Verrater, Forte started to head off.

"Hey, mind if you take watch while I go take a leak?"

"Yeah, no problem."

With nature calling, the knight from the Crimson Lion left the room, while the knight from coral peacock started to look through the spyglass. That is, until he was sure his companion left the room. After his suspicions were confirmed, he fished out an object of stone and glass from his pocket that started to glow with magic.

"Come in Diamond kingdom."

* * *

Shezu had just left the building along with the rest of the 15 year old children in the area. Rushing off to the nearest isolated part of the forest, he kept looking for a place where he could fully investigate his new grimoire. He came to a perfect spot, where a small stream was crossing the ground, and a few rocks lay strewn about.

" _Alright, let's see what my grimoire can do,"_ Shezu thought to himself.

Pulling out the black velvet book, he leafed through the pages...only to see that everyone was blank. Grimoires housed the spells that were at their master's disposal, and there were none to be found in Shezu's.

" _Okay, maybe...maybe I just need to practice a bit to get some."_

Closing his eyes, he started to focus. Feeling the warm energy surge through him, he started to manifest mana at his hands. Opening his eyes back up, he could see the energy at his disposal. With all his might, he envisioned shooting out fire like his mother, and shot out one hand while holding his grimoire with the other. Nothing came out. He tried again, even harder...but once again, nothing.

" _Alright, maybe...maybe I have water magic like my dad!"_

Looking to the stream, he tried the process once again. Gathering mana at his hands, he pointed one at the stream, trying to get the water to move. Once again...no response. He tried again and again, summoning as much mana as he possibly could in order to manipulate the water in front of him. When the endeavor seemed hopeless, he tried **creating** water instead out of thin air. He imagined it's features, it's wetness, how it felt to just dip your hand in it. Once again, nothing.

" _No, no, no...this can't be happening!"_

The boy's worst fears were starting to come true. He might be one of the many who's best magic was making objects float and move with his mind, an ability that would not even be half of what was required to become a magic knight. Looking at the rock to his side, the boy once again summoned his mana, and pointed a hand at them. He needed to see if this was the extent of his abilities. Putting in every ounce of will he could muster into trying to move the smallest rock, he gritted his teeth and made every sound of exertion humanly possible. Put once again...it was all for naught. Shezu couldn't even do something as basic as move an object with his magic. He slowly lowered his arms, and let his grimoire slip from his grasp. It hit the ground with a thud, just like his dreams.

* * *

At a flour mill, Eurale Ichor was taking a break on a bench, taking a drink from a wooden barrel of water nearby. He was sweating a good bit from all the work he had down for the day.

"Hey Eurale," called one of his coworkers, "Your boy Shezu gets his grimoire today right?"

"Yeah he does," he replied with a jovial, "can't wait to get back home to see what it looks like."

Eurale continued to converse with his fellow workers, talking about the events of the day, and taking bets on what power Shezu would manifest.

"Hey Eurale! You're up!"

Hearing the call of the foreman, Eurale realized break time was over. Getting up and over to his station, he stood on top of a platform that was over a water wheel, switching out with the previous worker. Pulling out his grimoire, he casted his best spell.

 **Water Creation Magic: Pushing Stream**

A rush of water came out in front of him, and started to fall on top of the wheel, starting to rotate it. It started slow at first, but as momentum built up, it went faster and faster. The excess water was led out of the building and drained to the nearest lake.

"Alright Eurale, you got 30 minute till the next switch out."

"Yeah...good to know sir."

* * *

Camilla Ichor was at a tavern in the middle of the town, working her heart out. Using her flame magic, she was cooking all manner of food to serve to the customers. She was currently roasting a nice stake, crating flame magic with one hand to cook it and pouring wine on it to season. Her grimoire, on the other hand, was simply floating in the air. While her attention was focused on the food, a part of her simply couldn't help but worry.

" _Shezu...I hope you get the grimoire you deserve."_

* * *

Back at the border station, Forte and Verrater were trying to pass time while on duty. The sun was starting to fall down, casting orange light over the land. Verrater suddenly felt the object of stone and glass start vibrating in his pocket. Knowing what that entailed, he eyed his companion, who was simply leaning back in his chair with eyes closed.

"Oy, Gris," he said, snapping his companion awake.

"Mind checking the storeroom? I saw some mouse droppings earlier, and I have a sneaking suspicion that they may have gotten into the bread. Besides, you look like you could use something to do."

Forte, rubbing one eye, had a look of compliance on his face.

"Yeah, might as well. Mouse hunting is a good way to pass the time after all."

"Eh, at least you get to fight something," quipped Verrater, "I'll keep lookout and holler if I see anything."

"Alright then."

After his companion left the room, the bald man got out the object once again.

"What are you doing calling me," he hissed?

"Hey man don't be such a sourpuss, just need to make sure the information you gave us on Kietan was solid," replied a jovial voice full of vigor.

"Look, you're paying me a good amount for this info, so I'm not going to lie to you. If there is one town that is the most vulnerable, it's Kietan, so…"

"Verrater, what the…"

Recognizing the voice, the man turned around to see Forte staring at him with a look of disbelief on his face

"Uh oh, someone got cauuught," said the voice from the object in a sing songy tone, before disconnecting from the other end.

The two men stared each other down, before the coral peacock broke the silence.

"So Forte, what are you doing back here so soon?"

"Forgot the key to the storeroom," he replied in a stone cold manner, summoning his grimoire in front of him, preparing for battle.

He responded, almost laughing at the absurdity of it, and summoning his own grimoire as well.

"The key huh...you think I would catch that."

* * *

Shezu was sitting down by the stream, holding his legs to his head. He hadn't moved an inch from the spot after discovering what his magic was capable of. He was absolutely depressed. All his hope of joining the magic knights seemed to just shatter right in front of him. After a long while, he slowly looked up at the sky, watching a stray hawk glide through it. Looking back down, glancing at the grimoire to his side, he picked it backup and gave it a good look.

" _Well, it may not be the grimoire I wanted...but at least it's mine."_

It was his best attempt to try to find a silver lining when everything seemed gray. Noticing that the sun was starting to set, he picked himself backup, and started to head home.

" _...Better get back home before mom and dad get worried."_

* * *

Forte was running through the woods, panting, sweating, and bleeding profusely. He had long since abandoned the border station, since staying there would mean his death. Stopping to rest behind a tree, he grabbed the left side of his stomach, which had a gaping wound.

"Oh Forteeee, come out and plaaaay!"

The Crimson Lion could hear the mocking voice of the traitor closing down on him. The man was starting to sweat. He could feel the jaws of death starting to close around him. Bringing out his grimoire he casted the last spell that could bring him any hope.

 **Fire Creation Magic: Fire Falcon**

A bird of fire appeared before him, and shot into the sky.

" _Hope the captain sees it in time…"_

Suddenly, from behind, he heard his attacker exclaim with a poisonous delight, "there you are!"

* * *

Shezu was taking the long way back home, trying to stall as much as possible the eventual talk he had to have with his parents. The talk in which he had to say that not only had he not inherited one of his parents magic, but he couldn't even use the simplest form of it. On his way, he was taking a back road that led around the village, with a forest to his right. Suddenly, the boy heard a rustling in the bushes. Looking at the commotion the boy expected a rabbit to dart out, or something else of small stature. Instead, what came out was a large man, bleeding. Shezu looked in shock at what he saw. He quickly started running towards the man, dropping his Grimoire.

"Hey! Are you okay," he called out?

Noticing the robe that he was wearing, Shezu thought, " _a magic knight?"_

"Damn," Forte cursed under his breath, "thought that the guys from the coral peacocks would be pushovers...guess I'm eating those words."

Hearing the calls of Shezu, the man looked up and saw the boy running towards him.

"Hey, get aw…"

"Well, well, well, got yourself a friend did you?"

Suddenly, both Forte and Shezu looked over to who the voice belonged to. Verrater came sauntering out of the forest, as if he owned it, without a single scratch on him.

"Shame, seems like I'm going to have to kill **two** people today."

Shezu looked at the traitor with the drawn grimoire, and felt a chill run down his spine. While the man looked and dressed very flamboyantly, the boy could feel the cold malice coming from the man. He could feel that he was telling the truth when he said that he would kill him. Forte suddenly sprinted off of the ground and past Shezu

" _Crap, if I run fast enough, maybe he'll chase after me instead of focusing on the boy…"_

But that hope was dashed as a spike of hardened jade pierced his leg. Falling to the ground, Forte groaned in pain. Shezu on the other hand just stood there in shock. He had no idea what was going on, and he had just seen more blood come out of a single person than he had seen in his entire life.

"Ah shame, was hoping to get you in the back with that one."

Shezu looked back to the attacker, and around him was a group of jade spears, as if they were poking out of the ground.

 **Jade Creation Magic: Javelin**

Rolling his wrist in a warm-up, "well, good thing I have spares," he said with a smirk. Plucking another jade spear out of the ground, he then eyed Shezu, standing still like a statue.

"Heh, don't worry, I'll get to **you** next."

Shezu felt the chill in his spine turn into ice. He was paralyzed, while a thousand thoughts raced through his head.

" _What should I do? Should I run? Should I yell? If I run, won't he just stab me in the back? What should I…"_

But before he could continue, he saw Verrater rear back his arm getting ready to launch the spear at Forte. But what stood out to him more was the look on Forte's face. He was holding a hand in front of his face, like it could stop what was coming. But behind that hand, were eyes that were filled to the brim with fear, and it was that that reminded Shezu of what he dreamed of. The reason he wanted to become a magic knight in the first place. To be someone who could get rid of that fear that suffocated and crushed people. To be able to erase fear itself. Rushing forward, he placed himself between Forte and Verrater. This surprised both of them, but for the Coral Peacock, it was only momentary.

"Well, seems like you want to die first...HAPPY TO OBLIGE!"

Rearing back his arm once again, he prepared to launch the javelin.

"Run," yelled Forte!

But Shezu stood firm, closing his eyes and placing his hands out in front of him, like he was trying to will the man to stop. Verrater launched the spear, and it was in that moment, the grimoire that Shezu tossed to the side flipped open, and letters began to carve themselves into the book. Mages obtain knew spells through either training or intense emotions, and the moment that Shezu was experiencing was pretty intense. It was then, that the jade spear that was launched snapped into pieces. Forte and Verrater both looked in shock at what the boy just created, and as the boy slowly opened his eyes, he too experienced the same feeling. What blocked the spear was a giant shield of hardened blood, that came from Shezu's own wrists. Everyone their looked in disbelief at what just happened, but it was only a momentary pause.

" _Well, if THAT won't work_ ," thought Verrater, " _how about THIS!"_

Slamming his hand to the ground a dozen of jade spike burst from the ground.

 **Jade Creation Magic: Green Forest**

Forte suddenly grabbed Shezu from behind and knocked him out of the way, barely missing the attack. The shield that Shezu summoned suddenly turned back to liquid, splattering the ground with blood. The momentary relief both Forte and Shezu felt suddenly flew away.

"Heh, you might have caught me off guard with that little trick of yours, but that doesn't change the fact that both of you are about to DIE!"

"Really? Is that how you think this is going to end?"

Suddenly, an unknown voice cut through the air. Everyone looked to see who it belonged to, and the person it belonged to, was Fuegoleon Vermillion. He was a tall man with long straight red hair, purple eyes with red markings around them, red earrings, and a diamond marking in the middle of his forehead. He was the captain of the Crimson Lions, and fittingly, he was atop of a lion made out of fire. Stepping down from his ride, he then walked up straight to the traitor, with waves of mana coming off of him. It was like an ocean of magical power was contained within one man, and everyone there felt it. Slowly approaching the traitor, Fuegoleon began to speak.

"So, it seems like Forte was right in calling me. I, tend to give people the benefit of the doubt, but since you were attacking someone who couldn't defend themselves and a defenseless boy, I'm willing to guess that you're in the wrong."

As Fuego got closer, Verrater got more nervous, as if at any moment he was about to be incinerated.

"So tell me, are you going to come along peacefully, or are you going to make this hard?"

For a moment, the tension was thick in the air. Was the man going to come along peacefully, or was he going to die. After a few tense seconds, Verrater lowered his head in defeat, and with that his grimoire fell to the ground.

"I'll...I'll come along peacefully."

"Hmph, wise choice," stated Fuegoleon. Suddenly a mass of lion paws made out of fire surrounded the traitor.

 **Flame Binding Magic: Lion's Paw**

After securing him, Fuego went over to where Forte and Shezu were on the ground.

"Well, well, seems like you got yourself into some trouble, eh Forte?"

"Heh, seems that way captain."

Giving him a shoulder to lean on, Fuego helped his injured subordinate up. He then proceeded to whistle with two fingers, and the fire lion he came riding on leaped over to him. Putting the man atop of it, he then focused his attention to the boy on the ground, who was just looking open mouthed at everything that was happening around him.

"You alright boy," Fuego said while offering a hand. This seemed to snap Shezu out of his stupor

"Uh, yeah, thanks," he replied, taking the hand and helping himself up.

"I saw the magic you used to protect my subordinate, have to say, it's...interesting to say the least."

"Well, yeah...uh, thank you sir."

"Do you plan on taking the magic knights exam?"

"Well, uh….yeah, I do."

"Hmph," Fuego smiled, "well, I hope you do your best."

Hoping back onto the fire lion, he then went over to Verrater, and had his mount pick him up in his teeth like a bone. With that, he then ran off with his subordinate and traitor in tow, leaving burnt grass where the lion stept. With that Shezu was all alone.

" _Well...that was an experience."_

It was only after that thought that Shezu felt a sharp pain at his hands. Looking down, he noticed that his wrist were still bleeding.

" _Oh shit! If I don't stop the bleeding, I'm going to die! I gotta…"_

But as the thoughts crosse his mind, the blood that spilled from the shield suddenly flew into the air and returned into Shezu's wrists. Along with the blood, his grimoire that he'd dropped earlier closed itself and returned to float in front of its owner. Grabbing it out of mid-air, Shezu looked back down at his wrists to notice that the blood had hardened.

" _Man, this day is just getting stranger and stranger…"_

But, leafing through his grimoire, he saw the one spell that he had. The one spell that helped him save someone's life.

" _...but all in all, not a bad one."_

* * *

Eurale was at the kitchen stove stirring the stew, while Carmilla was knitting a scarf at the table. As the day was getting darker and darker, they both started giving each other looks of concern, as their son hadn't returned yet. But as soon as their concern started to turn into anxiety, Shezu came right through the door.

"Son," they both exclaimed with glee. Rushing towards him, they started to bombard him with questions.

"Where have you been?"

"Are you okay?"

"How did the ceremony go?"

"Did you get your grimoire?"

Gently smiling at the genuine concern his parents had for him, Shezu broke their bombing of question with one of his own.

"Well, where should I start?"

 **Notes:** Well, finally done with the introduction. Now we can start getting to the actual meat of the story.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: The Magic Knights Exam

* * *

Today was the day. The day of the magic knights exam. Shezu was dressed in a black shirt with gold hemmed cuffs, light brown pants, and leather shoes. It was his Sunday best, and hopefully his good luck charm. He was already out of the door, looking towards the capital, where the exams would take place.

"Son," he heard from behind him. Looking back, he could see his mother and father standing in the doorway. They both had looks of excitement and concern on their faces, in equal measure. Needless to say, Shezu had the same look too. Going back, he stood before both of them in a terse moment of silence. Fortunately, Eurale was willing to break it.

"Well, today's the day," he said.

"Yeah, seems like it," his son replied. It was then that, Shezu came up and hugged both of his parents for good luck.

"Show them what you got," said his father.

"No matter what happens, we'll be proud of you," said his mother.

Finally ending the hug, Shezu went off on his way to the capital, to begin the next part of his journey.

* * *

Fireworks were being set off in the sky as the young man entered the capital. The city itself was in a jovial mood, as if the excitement of all the examinees was infectious. Shezu made his way through the streets, satchel in hand, marveling at all the street vendors using magic to help sell their wares. Some were roasting meat on a stick with their fire magic, while others had knives cut up their food in the back all by themselves. Not to mention some of the citizens using their own types of magic as well, like a random passerby who held some fish in a sphere of water he created. Shezu marveled at the things he was seeing, but still focused on making his way to the examination site. As he approached his destination, he came into view of what looked like a giant coliseum with a statue of the first wizard king atop one of the rims. The place was used sometimes for circus acts or places where mages trained and dueled each other. But for now, it was going to be used as the place where potential magic knights were going to be tested. Many candidates were pouring into the testing area from the different entrances, and as Shezu followed one of the crowds into the nearest one, he was stopped by two guards lowering their spears in front of him.

"Halt," one stated, "present your grimoire please."

Doing as instructed Shezu got out his grimoire and gave it to the guard to his right. Looking it over, his right hand began to glow as he waved it over the book, and two numbers began to appear over it.

"You are candidate number seventy-eight, next."

Handing his grimoire back to him, Shezu walked forward while looking back down at his book. The number seventy-eight was stamped onto it with bright glowing mana. Going straight down the hallway, Shezu finally entered the heart of the structure, where dozens and dozens of other young aspiring mages waited. Needless to say, the competition was stiff. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain at the side of his forehead.

"AH!" he yelped.

Turning to see what caused the pain he saw a small black bird with a white belly that had a sprout of feathers come from the top of its head like a crown.

" _What the heck is this?"_ Shezu thought to himself.

It seemed like someone read his mind, as he quickly got his answer.

"These are the famous **Anti-birds** of the exam venue, the less magic you have, the more they peck at you."

" _Well, I guess that answers that."_

From what he could tell from the clothing the candidates were wearing to the amount of birds around them, the nobles wearing fancy garb had an average of zero to one bird hovering around them. The commoners, on the other hand, had an average of two to three birds around them. Shezu looked around to see how many he got.

" _Four… not good."_

This realization caused a lump to form in his throat, " _Already they are judging our potential."_

Looking up into the rafters of the colosseum, he could **feel** the eyes of the examiners watching him, and everyone else there. Judging their capability. Looking out for those whose skills were wanting, so that they could be expelled. Suddenly, everyone heard a soft and elegant voice call out.

"Thanks for waiting, examinees."

Suddenly, all the **Anti-birds** flew away, as if called back by a master. Everyone looked to where the voice came from, and saw who would their judges would be. There stood the captains of the nine magic squad knights, and at the center of them stood the captain of the strongest magic knight squad regarded. Captain William Vangeance, leader of the Golden Dawn, and man most likely to be the next Wizard King. Taking out his grimoire with one hand, it flipped itself open as if it were alive. Settling on a page, the captain recited the spell's name.

 **Magic Tree, Descend!**

Suddenly, the clouds darkened and grew heavy. Then a circle formed right in the middle of them, and out of it, came the roots of a giant tree. It was as if a giant plant was resting atop the clouds, while the roots grew below. Like, well...magic...all the roots sprouted down and multiplied, finding each contestant down there like a bloodhound. Then, the roots themselves contorted and changed; to form broomsticks of all things. But like the wind, the roots shrunk up back into the clouds, like it was never there in the first place. Closing his grimoire shut, William decreed, almost with jovial glee, "Now then, we shall begin the Magic Knights entrance exam!"

Shezu felt the butterflies in his stomach fly around even faster

"We're going to have you go through a multitude of tests," William continued, "the nine captains of the Magic Knights will be judging your progress. We shall then select the candidates we want in our squad. Those who are not chosen will be deemed unworthy to join the Magic Knights."

All the candidates took a large gulp.

"The first test, is to fly using those broomsticks."

As if to demonstrate, the man behind the golden dawn's captain hopped onto his own, and started to float.

"Any mage who can control his or her powers can do it instinctively," the captain continued, "it's the most basic method for moving about for a mage."

Soon, every candidate hopped onto their broomsticks and started to fly, or tried to at the very least. Some could barely float of the ground, while others shot off the ground with no control. Needless to say, Shezu was having difficulty of his own. He was getting off the ground, but it was a struggle. He kept bobbing up and down on his broomstick, almost as if any moment it would give out under him and he would plummet to the ground. Trying to steady himself, he then came to a stop in mid-air. It was only then that he could look around and get a bearing of his surroundings. Looking at the other candidates, Shezu noticed a pattern.

" _Huh, it seems like most of the candidates are struggling between 'power' and 'control'"_

Indeed, that was the case. Candidates with more **power** than **control** were moving, but were unable to go where they wanted to. Bobbing up and down, like they were wrestling with their own broom for where they wanted to go. On the other hand, there were others who had the exact opposite problem. Their control of their brooms were smooth as silk, practically being still in mid-air, but were as fast as a snail...that was dead. But of course, there were the nobles, who seemed to have both down pat. Sailing through the air with speed like sails on the water. Some even did a few tricks like loops. But the one who really took the cake, was a contestant that was **Standing** on his broom, like a surfboard! Shezu, like everyone there, obviously took notice.

" _Man, who does this guy think...wait a minute?"_

Shezu then recognized who that boy was. It was the same boy who received the four-leaf grimoire at the ceremony. Apparently skill was still something he had, as he sailed past all the contestants.

"Hmph, show off," Shezu muttered to himself. But then, as if on cue he heard a sudden **URRGGGHHHH!** As if someone was trying to give birth. Looking to the source of the noise, Shezu, along with those in the vicinity, noticed a short boy with silver hair pulling hard on the shaft...of his broomstick, trying to get into the air.

" _Huh, that boy...he's the one who didn't get a grimoire at the ceremony!"_ Shezu exclaimed to himself, " _If he doesn't have one then why did…"_

But suddenly, he noticed on the boy's side that there was a grimoire, in it's holster. A black book with a dirty and tattered cover…

" _Well, guess he did get one after all, must be a late bloomer…"_

Unfortunately, while he was focusing on his surroundings, Shezu's concentration slipped. He started to fall out of the air, only barely being able to catch himself. Snapping his head to the captains' box, he hoped that none of the examiners saw that. Unfortunately, some did, and were not impressed with the display.

" _Dammit!"_ Shezu cursed himself silently, " _Stop focusing on others and focus on yourself!"_

For the rest of the test, the boy did just that. He was able to improve, but only slightly, the best he was able to do was **slowly** move his broom at a controlled pace. The test soon ended, and the rest of the day played out.

The magic power test: To break a stone wall in front of you with your magic. Shezu focused, and tried to recall the feelings he felt when his power first awakened. He felt the sharp pain as the hardened blood came out of his wrist again, but it was only a smaller amount this time. A cup, at best. The boy tried harder but it was the best he could do. Putting all his might into it, he formed a ball and shot the hardened blood towards the wall as strong as he could. It smashed against the wall, but the most it could leave was a crack. The goal of the test was to see how fast you could turn the wall in front of you into rubble. To see how powerful you were. Shezu tried again and again, but the most he could do was chip away the corner and sides.

" _Not good,"_ Shezu thought

The magic control test: To shoot a flying target as many times as you can. The targets, however, were **floating** in mid-air, like they were **trying** to avoid being shot. Shezu formed his blood ball again, and shot it at the nearest target towards him. Fortunately, the boy had more control then he had power, and was able to follow the target with ease, until he was finally able to hit it. He tried to hit it again and again, even hitting the bullseye now and then.

" _Alright, I just might have a chance!"_

The magic creation test: To form an object out of your magic. It was to see the imagination and detail a candidate could do with their skills. Some created birds of fire while others created statues of themselves. Shezu tried his best to create something that stood out, but given the fact that he only had a cup of blood to work with. So in the end, the best he could do was make a diamond out of it. But at the very least it was perfectly shaped diamond.

The magic nurture test: To inject magic into a seed and help it grow. Magic is an energy that resides in all living things, even plants and animals. Shezu had some luck with this one, as he injected as much magic as he could into the seed. Soon, it was starting to sprout and grow larger and larger. At the end, he had a decently sized sprout, that was only second to the nobles in the group.

And then, it was finally time for the last test.

"Next, is the final test," William declared, "In this test, you will engage in actual combat. You will pick a partner and fight him or her. I'm sure you mastered one or two attack spells, right?"

Everyone there started looking around with suspicion at their fellow candidates. If someone was to lose, it would decrease their chances of getting into the magic knights exponentially. Everyone started to pair up, trying to choose a partner that would make them look strong. Needless to say, Shezu was having difficulty doing this. Every time he approached someone, they would immediately go off to partner with someone else. If there was one grace that Shezu lacked, it was social. But then he heard someone call to him from behind.

"Hey want to team up?"

Looking behind him, Shezu saw the owner of the voice belong to a boy dressed in black knee-high shoes, brown pants, A white dress shirt and blue vest. He had yellow eyes and equally yellow hair. He was a noble, a notable one based on his outfit.

"Seems like you don't have anyone to fight with, so what do you say," the noble continued with an innocent smile. Shezu, looking around, knew that his words were true. But still, he knew that his opponent was a noble, people known for there strong magical prowess. It was the magical prowess that guaranteed there noble status in the first place. However…

" _Well, beggars can't be choosers…"_

After about ten minutes, William continued, "Alright then, The match is over when a competitor gives up or can't fight anymore. We have a mage who can use healing magic in the wings, so fight to your heart's content. Now, would the first competitors come forward?"

 **Notes** : Well, better late than never right? Sorry this took so long, but I've been dealing with...stuff. I promise I won't give up on this story. Well, until next time.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: To be Chosen

* * *

The first competitors up were the short, silver-haired boy and a young man with blonde hair, wearing black boots, white pants, and a light-colored shirt with a purple vest. His name, is Sekke Bronzazza. Shezu was watching from the crowd, waiting his turn like everyone else. But **unlike** everyone else, he was curious about what the boy was going to do. From the awarding ceremony he knew, or at the very least **thought** , that the boy had no magical talent. However, from what he glanced, he **did** have a grimoire. So...how was this going to play out? Before the match started, Sekke seemed to lean over and whisper something to the short boy. They were words Shezu was not able to hear, however.

"Now...Begin!" William proclaimed.

Sekke whipped out his grimoire, all the while proclaiming, "I'm not going to hold back. Come and get me Asta!"

He let out a pompous laugh as if to show off his superiority. Soon a blue-green ball formed around him, translucent nonetheless, with spouts coming out of it as well.

 **Bronze Creation Magic: Sekke Magnum Cannonball**

"Don't hold back, I'm ready for ya," Sekke said, winking in his opponents direction as if to mock him even further. In return, the short, silver-haired boy replied, "Got it. Here I go."

Then, it happened. Dashing forward, he cleared the distance between him and his opponent in the blink of an eye. This was no small feat, as there was at least a good six feet between them. All the while, his grimoire started to radiate power, and a sword handle began to come out of it. Grabbing the hilt of the sword above his head, he then proceeded to unsheathe it out of the book, and strike down his opponent with it in one smooth motion. The blade he held was massive, about the width and length of his own body, and it cut through the bronze ball as if it were butter. Though, oddly enough, it didn't cut through the opponent. Though perhaps that was more of a curse than a blessing. With his opponent laying defeated on the ground, still holding his sword proclaimed, "I'm not here just to join the Magic Knights and have fun without any effort. I'm here...to become the Wizard King!"

The audience was stunned silent, no one knew what to say, Especially Shezu. Asta then put his sword back in his grimoire, the book swallowing it up as if it were a black hole. He then simply walked back into the crowd, meanwhile, some of the medical mages carted the other boy off in a stretcher to be healed. It was needed after all, since a mass of metal just crushed him. Shezu followed Asta with his eyes until he lost him.

" _So, his name is Asta...well, at least I know his name now,"_

Pretty soon, the next competitors were up, then the ones after them, and after them again. It was quite a series of fights. Earth golems being blasted with water spells, elements battling each other. Some strong nobles fought weak peasants in order to show how strong they were and how easily they could crush their opponents. Other times, nobles fought each other, in order to show their skills when faced with a **real** challenge, or perhaps to settle competitions with other families. The fights were impressive, on par with the opening fight, at the very least. But another one to take the cake was a spar that happened in the middle of the competition. It was a noble named Salim from the Hapshass family. He had long, smooth, blonde locks, and a white shirt with frills at the collar and cuffs. He was fighting the boy with black hair, the same boy who received the four-leaf clover from the awarding ceremony. They stood facing each other in the ring, waiting for the other to make a move. Salim was happy to oblige. Pulling out his grimoire, electrical energy began to pulse around him, readying a large attack. However, before he could fire it off, the tall, slim, black-haired boy opened his grimoire and shot off a spell of his own.

 **Wind Magic: Towering Tornado**

As the name implied, a large column of wind shot up from the ground, swallowing up his opponent, and spitting him out. The fight was over before it could even began. Needless to say, the crowd was flabbergasted. The matches went on, until in the last ones came up. The sky was beginning to glow orange as it transitioned to twilight. It was now Shezu's turn. The young man walked up along with his competitor, staying a good distance away from each other. There was a tense moments of silence between the two, as a breeze of wind blew between them. Suddenly, they both opened there grimoires with haste.

"Before we get started, let us introduce ourselves, I'm Selb Blitz," the noble said with a smile that could drip venom, if it were any more snake-like.

"Shezu Ichor," The young man replied in a serious tone of voice.

"Hmph, well Shezu, let's give it our best shall we?"

"After yo-"

But before he could even finish, a bolt of energy streaked past his right ear, licking it. Shezu felt a sharp pain in it, before it went completely numb. He let his right hand touched the hit ear, caressing it and pinching it as hard as he could to see if he could feel anything. But no, he couldn't feel a single thing. He looked back at his opponent, and more importantly, the source of the attack. Selb had both his hands shaped like pistols, with electricity continuously coming out of the two extended out.

 **Lightning Magic: Stunning Bolt**

Selb continued to smile, all the while saying, "well, if you insist."

The only thing Shezu could do was look in shock, and fear. Selb continued to fire off his bolts again and again, with the only thing the blood mage could do being dodge them. Shezu tried to think of a plan.

" _Damn, I'm in trouble! Let's see… I can judge by where the shots are going to go by the position of his fingers, so I at least have that. But on the downside, there is no one behind me, which means he can fire as much as wants without hurting anyone. Not to mention I don't feel like using the people behind me as a meat shield. The best hope I have is to slip in between the shots and nail him with some hardened blood."_

Shezu tried to concentrate, trying to summon a ball of solid blood like he did during the tests. However, every time he tried to do it, he would notice a bolt of lightning coming towards him, forcing him to dodge and break his focus.

" _Oh, who am I kidding! I can barely dodge his attacks, let alone pull off a counter of my own."_

All the while, Selb was thinking to himself with a slimy smile, " _that's right, dance you commoner clown, DANCE!"_

To enforce his want, he shot a few bolts at Shezu's feet, making him swerve and jive. Suddenly, he shot a bolt to Shezu's right, making the boy dodge left. Unfortunately, this is what the lightning user wanted. He then fired a bolt at him right before his opponent could rebound, hitting him right in the arm. It was a feint. Shezu felt the same shock of pain like he did before, only this time it was through his entire left arm. He was fortunately able to quickly recover, and catch his second breath. To add to his fortune, he didn't have to dodge any more bolts, at least not for the moment. Selb was too busy giving him the most pompous smile a person ever had, impressed with his little maneuver.

" _Heh, don't get too full of yourself there…"_ Shezu thought to himself while shooting a spiteful look in his opponent's direction.

Squeezing his left arm with his right, it was in the same situation as his ear. No matter how hard he squeezed, he couldn't feel a thing. Even worse, not only couldn't he feel it, he couldn't even **move** it. Now matter how hard he tried, he couldn't even get it to flinch. The only time it ever moved was when he used his still functioning arm to lift it up, but it would always flop down like a wet noodle when he let go. To make matters worse, the bolts started to fire off again. Shezu's second wind was over. It was back to dodging again, only this time, the boy's useless arm was swinging about wildly like it was a ribbon of meat. This caused some snickering from the onlookers at the sheer ridiculousness of it, which **definitely** didn't help matters. Shezu was running out of ideas, energy, and time.

" _Damnit! What am I going to do! I can't launch a counterattack, I'm running out of breath, and my left arm is useless...wait..,"_

It was then that Shezu had an epiphany.

" _My left arm is useless!"_

While Shezu was coming to his realization, Selb was coming to one of his own.

" _Well, this was fun, but now…"_

"What do you say we end this, Shezu?"

The young man simply responded, in a tired voice, "Heh, couldn't agree more."

Abruptly, Shezu rushed forward towards his opponent. This took Selb by surprise, but not for long, as he quickly shot off a bolt in order to stun him. It hit him, but only in his left arm once again. Shezu wasn't as quick as the boy with the black sword, but that didn't matter, since he had a shield to protect him. That shield, was his useless arm.

" _I might not be willing to use the people behind me as a meat shield, but my useless arm will do just fine!"_

This was the epiphany Shezu had. The lightning mage realized what his opponent was doing, and tries to shoot off as many stun bolts as he could. But it was to no avail, as Shezu was low to the ground, he couldn't hit his legs. Not only that, but his head was tucked in, and his body was turned to show only his side to his opponent. Thus the only thing Selb could hit was that already useless arm. With this to his advantage, Shezu was able to concentrate on making a hardened blood ball. He didn't even have to deal with the pain of the bolts, given that his arm was already numb. The only pain he felt was the blood coming out of his body. He formed a mass of blood hardened just like the shield that protected him. With that, he swung his arm upward, slamming the mass into his opponent's chin like an iron uppercut. In a moment that seemed to freeze, Selb was launched into mid-air, and quickly fell down right back to earth. Everyone stared in shock at the result, and was with this, that the last of the fights concluded.

* * *

"And that marks the end of the examination," William declared. All the examinees were present under the podium where the captains of the Magic Knights were seated.

"Each examinee will come forward when their number is called out. The squad captains will raise their hands if they wish to have you join their team. It is up to the examinee to accept the offer or not, and if more than one captain raises their hand, it is also up for the examinee to choose. However, as mentioned before, if there are no takers...the examinee will not be able to join the Magic Knights."

Everyone once again took a gulp, as the announcer stated, "examinee one, step forward…"

* * *

One by one, the examinees were called up, and one by one, they were rejected. The first examinee to be offered a position was number 32, to the Purple Orcas. It continued, with everyone holding their breath to see whether or not a hand would be raised for them. Until finally...it was Shezu's turn.

"Number 78, step forward…"

Shezu stood before the nine captains of the Magic Knights

"...any hands?"

...and none of them were raising their hands.

For a tense moment, everything stood still. With Shezu looking at the captains, and the captains looking back with no interest at all. Then Shezu started hear the words he didn't want to hear. The words he **dreaded** to hear.

"Number 78, no han-"

"Excuse me?"

The voice that spoke up surprised everyone, as it belonged to the captain of the Crimson Lions, Fuegoleon Vermillion. Shezu recognized him, as he was the same man who saved him from the jade magic user form the Coral Peacocks.

" _Huh, how did I not notice that he was here?"_

"I'm curious...Shezu was it? Why do you wish to join the magic knights?"

Fuegoleon was not feigning interest. He legitimately seemed like he was curious about Shezu's intentions for joining the Magic Knights. But Shezu...didn't even know how to respond. He could feel in his gut that his answer would decide the outcome of the captain's decision. What could he say? What **should** he say? In the end, all he could say was what anyone should say. He told the truth.

"When I was a child, a group of bandits attacked my village in the common realm. They were called the 'Flames of Avalon.'"

"The Flames of...what?"

"Oh yeah, I heard of them."

"They were a pretty evil group."

Shezu continued, looking down as he recalled the unpleasant memory, "they were going to burn down my village, along with everyone in it. But then, a group of Magic Knights came to the rescue, Saving me and everyone else there...Before they came, all I remember feeling is fear. Like, I was being drowned by it… but when Knights saved us, it was like all that fear simply vanished."

Looking back up towards the captain, he then spoke with a new sense of confidence, "that's why I want to join the Magic Knights. I want to become someone who is able to erase fear, even from the hearts of people themselves."

With his tale done, all the captains looked at him with different looks of reaction. Some who were impressed smiled. Others raised an eyebrow in confusion, as if they didn't know what he was saying. While others seemed to not even be amused. But the most notable thing that happened after the story, was that a single hand was raised by a captain. That hand, belong to the captain of the Crimson Lions.

"Here...we'll take him"

Everyone was stunned into silence.

"What! No way!"

"The Crimson Lions, they got the second amount of stars last year. They're considered the strongest Magic Knight group, just behind the Golden Dawn."

"No way can a commoner just join!"

Shezu himself was shocked by this outcome. The most he hoped for was joining one of the lesser Magic Knight squads, like the Purple Orcas, Green Mantis, or Coral Peacocks. But not the Black Bulls. Even Shezu didn't believe that he could survive that. However, the Crimson Lions! Only nobles were expected to join them, along with the Golden Dawn and Silver Eagles. What could Shezu say? Except…

"Yes! I accept!"

And with that...it was done.

* * *

Shezu left before the rest of the examinees were judged and waited outside to be fetched, as was required. He went towards the main gate, passing the guards that greeted him at the start of the exam. As soon as he left the colosseum, the number stamped across his grimoire dissipated. All the examinees that were deemed worthy to be Magic Knights formed their own groups based on their squad. Shezu was the first to be chosen by the Crimson Lions, so he had the privilege of choosing where the group was going to form. After staking his claim, he looked out towards the city, and even further towards the horizon. He took a deep breath.

" _I did it...I_ actually _did it…"_

* * *

The exam was over, and all the captains were heading out in order to meet their new recruits. However, before Fuegoleon could leave, someone called to him.

"Vermillion."

Fuego turned to see where the cold, icy voice came from. It belonged to Nozel Silva, captain of the Silver Eagles. He wore a blue cape trimmed with white fur, a white shirt, pants, and sandals.

"Ah Nozel," Furagoleon responded in a friendly manner, "something I can do for you?"

"Yes, I was wondering if you could answer for me a small question?"

"And…that would be?"

"Why would you let a commoner into your squad?"

Nozel had a look of genuine displeasure on his face, as if he were **insulted** by Fuegoleon's actions.

"Whatever do you mean?"

"You know what I mean. I'm surprised that the squad who got second place in the festival of stars last year would let someone like that into their group."

Fuegoleon put a hand to his chin, as if he were contemplating the question.

"Well...what can I say? I see potential in the boy."

"Really? Is **that** your reason?"

"As far as I'm concerned Nozel, that's the only reason I need. Besides I don't see how the members I choose for **my** team are any of **your** business."

This made Nozel shot his fellow captain a venomous look. He then stormed past him, looking to leave.

"Just be careful Fuegoleon. Let too many incompetent people into your squad and you might just lose all those stars you earned."

"Is that what this is about. You know Nozel, **third** place is nothing to be ashamed of," Fuegoleon said with a smug grin.

"Hmph."

With that, both of the captains left the testing ground, along with their attendants.

* * *

"Hello there. We meet again…"

Shezu turned to see Fuegoleon, his captain.

"Uh, yeah, guess we do…"

Pulling an object from the folds of his clothes, he handed it to Shezu. It was a letter with a wax seal stamped with the seal of a roaring lion.

"Read the contents of the letter. It contains information about our base of operations, along with other information. Bring it when you come to the base when dawn breaks."

Shezu held the letter in his hands like he was holding paper made out of gold, all the while responding with a soft, "Yes, sir."

And just like that, the captain left just as soon as he arrived. But before leaving, Shezu noticed the attendant that was with him. He was a young man, just about as old as Shezu. He had the same hair as the captain, the same color of eyes, even the same attire! In all honesty, he was like a younger version of the captain himself. Shezu and him gave each other a silent, neutral look, before Fuego broke it.

"Leopold, come!"

The young man did as he was told, following his captain without a second of hesitation, and without giving Shezu a second look. The only thing Shezu thought was, " _Huh, wonder if they're related?"_

* * *

Carmilla Ichor was sitting at the table, both hands clasped in front of her. She was rocking back and forth, all the while tapping her foot. Eurale, on the other hand, was washing the dishes. Though in truth he was only doing it to pass the time and take his mind of things for a while. Both were waiting with **much** concern.

" _Where was Shezu? What was he doing? Was he okay?"_

These were the thought that raced through their minds. Until, they finally heard the knock on the door. They both raced towards it, ripping it open to see their son standing there with a smile. Carmilla practically yanked Shezu back inside. Immediately after, the young man was bombarded with questions.

"How are you!?"

"How did it go!?"

"Did, you get in!?"

"Are you hurt!?"

All Shezu could do was wait until the bombardment stopped, and only then was he able to give a look that was a mixture of confusion, surprise, and anxiety.

"Well...I definitely got news."

 **Notes:** Well, now we know who Shezu is going to go on adventures on with. This is the point where the story starts to go its own way. Think of it like what was going on **behind** the scenes. Until next time!


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Where the Lions Dwell

* * *

The sun was just starting to crest over the clouds, while the birds in the trees started to chirp. Shezu came out of his house door, dressed in a traveling cloak traveling bag strapped to his back. It was loaded with clothes, books, and any other items Shezu wanted to take with him. He was still rubbing the sleep from his eyes, when both his parents came up from behind him. Unlike the looks of concern and anxiety they had for him when he went to the Magic Knights exam, they now had looks of happiness...yet also sorrow. They were seeing their son go out on his own, but they were also having to say goodbye. Shezu also knew this.

"Well, here I go…" the boy said, with some degree of doubt. As he made his way out though, his father called for him.

"Wait son," called Eurale. Shezu turned towards him in curiosity.

"In order to celebrate you getting into the Magic Knights, we got you this," and as Carmilla said the words, she brought out the clothed item that was hiding behind her back. Quickly removing it, she revealed a cage, and within that cage was a small bird. It had mostly black feathers, but a white head and under tail. What was notable though, was that it had a leather harness on with a holster in the back.

"Is that-," Shezu started.

"Yep, it's a Pen-tail. We have it's second cage upstairs for it to come back to, in case...you know...you want to write back…"

Suddenly tears started to well in the mother's eyes, and in turn, tears started to well in Shezu's. Even Eurale's eyes started to water a bit. Shezu then proceeded to give his parents the biggest hug he could possibly muster. After a few moments locked in the embrace, they all let go. After tying the Pen-tails' cage to his traveling bag, Shezu set off for the Crimson Lions headquarters, but not before giving one last wave goodbye towards his parents.

* * *

It was still early morning, with the sky just starting to turn orange, when Shezu arrived at the base of the Crimson Lions. It was a large compound, located in the outer edge of the noble realm. It had two housing buildings on both sides, while a megastructure sat in the middle. In the very back of the compound, Shezu could make out the outline of a tower. The walls around the headquarters were made of stone that were at least two people high. Vibrant, green vines covered them, and a metal gate is what prevented anyone from entering the front door. However, the odd thing about this gate was that they seemed to be welded in the middle with a golden lion's head. Approaching the entrance, Shezu looked to see if there was anyone who would let him in.

"Hello? It's the new recruit from yesterday?"

No one answered

"Um...does anyone hear…"

But before he could finish his sentence, the golden lion's head started to talk!

"Who goes there," it said in a deep, commanding, yet calm voice?

The shock of the lion speaking surprised Shezu, making him jump a little off the ground. Whenever the lion spoke, it's mouth would not move, but the eyes did glow a deep orange. The lion head asked once again.

"Who goes there?"

Shezu honestly had no choice but to respond.

"Um...Shezu Ichor, the new recruit to the Crimson Lions."

"Letter."

Shezu remembered what the captain had given him. He took his travel pack off and fished out what the head had asked for. Taking the piece of paper out of the envelope, he showed it to the lion. The statues eyes flashed a bright orange, and both the letter and envelope caught fire immediately. Shezu quickley let go of them, and they both incinerated before they could hit the ground.

"Shezu Ichor, know that you are now granted access to the headquarters of the Crimson Lions. You may come and leave whenever you wish, all you must do, is speak your name."

"Well, alright then."

Shezu readjusted his backpack and tried to go in, but the front gate wouldn't open for him.

"Hey, what the?"

The boy had a look of confusion and frustration on his face for a few seconds, that is, until he figured it out.

"Um...Shezu Ichor?"

The lion's eyes glowed once more, and the statue started to spin counter clockwise, the gears grinding behind it like a rusty safe. Finally there was a click, and the gate swung wide open. Shezu stepped through the entrance, the gate closing behind him by itself, clicking shut. Now that he was through the main gate, he now had a good view of the main courtyard. And what a view it was. Right in front of him was a fountain that had four lions each facing away from each other at the base, each spitting out water. Atop their heads was a giant saucer of water where a couple of birds were washing themselves. To his left and right were identical buildings. They were three stories high, with ten doors to each level. Each door was under an arch, and red flags of the Crimson Lion's embel hung from the levels in front of the columns. That was just on the two top layers, the bottom one had large pine trees instead of flags.

"Ah, there you are."

Looking to see where the voice came from, he saw the captain come from behind the water fountain, with the same attendant he had at the magic knights exam. Shezu went right up to greet him.

"Uh, hi. How have you…"

"Is that any way to greet your captain," Fuegoleon said in a sudden stern voice, with a look of what appeared to be insult on his face. The sudden shift in personality really took Shezu off guard. It was like the captain in front of him was a different person entirely.

"Um...excuse m-"

"At attention Knight!"

Shezu immediately straightened up his back and puffed out his chest as much as he could. He had no idea of the formal proceedings for Magic Knights, but his captain's sudden shouting made him try to look as serious as possible. After all, he didn't come this far just to be kicked out.

"Now listen here," Fuegoleon continued, "I was willing to be as warm and as curious as I could possibly be. After all, when we first met, you were a civilian."

This comment made Shezu recall the way the captain interacted with him in the past, making the encounter he was having with him now all the more bizarre.

"However, you are no longer just a civilian...You are a Magic Knight!"

He said all this while circling round Shezu, like a vulture inspecting his next meal.

"As a Magic Knight, it will be your job to protect the people of this country, and even the life of the king himself! You will be expected to give everything you have towards this endeavor, even your life if need be."

Fuegoleon looked Shezu straight in the face when he said his last sentence, making it **clear** that he was serious. The boy could do nothing but gulp in response.

"First thing's first, whenever I address you, or vice versa, you will snap your heels together, and give me the Magic Knights Salute!"

The first command was easy enough, with young man bringing his heels together all the while standing straight. However, with the last request…

"Um, excuse m-"

"You will start and end every sentence with 'sir' when you address me Knight!"

"Ah, sir, how do I do the Magic Knights salute sir?"

"Is that something you really don't know?"

"Sir, no sir."

Fuegoleon gave an exasperated sigh, then quickly grabbed Shezu's right hand. He joined the pinky and thumb together, making a circle. He then made sure that the remaining three middle fingers were sticking out. Finally, he placed the entire hand itself on the boy's chest.

"THAT-is the Magic Knights salute. Learn it, love it."

"Err, yes sir. Understood sir."

"Hmph, very well. This right here, is Leopold Vermillion. He is my younger brother."

Fuegoleon stepped to the side and gestured towards the person he was talking about, giving him the spotlight.

"Not only is he my younger brother, he is also your senior. As such, when I am not around, he is the one you refer to. Give him any courtesy you would show me. Now then, I need to be off. Leopold will take things from here on out."

With that, fuegoleon turned around and started walking towards the Tower in the center. Left alone, the two boys just looked at each other in a terse moment of silence. Now that Shezu had a good chance to look at him, he could finally see how similar he was to his older brother. They both had fire red hair, the same tone of skin, and even the same facial features regarding nose, ears, and chin. In all honesty, Leopold looked somewhat like a younger Fuegoleon. However, there were a few differences that set them apart. While the captain had smooth, long hair, his brother's was short, spiky, and had a pony tail coming out the back. Not only that, but while Fuegoleon had purple eyes, his brother had green. There was even a bit of difference in how they dressed. The older brother wore pants that went down into leather boots, while the younger one wore shoes instead, exposing his shins. But other than those details, the two were practically alike.

"Well, then," Leopold spoke, ending the silence, "seems like you're new recruit. The only one the captain seemed to pick this year."

This perked Shezu's attention.

"Wait, I'm the only Crimson Lion recruit this year?"

Leopold raised an eyebrow.

"Um...sir?"

"Why yes. Yes you are," the brother continued in serious yet somewhat mocking tone. He placed his right hand on Shezu's shoulder.

"No pressure."

"Yeah, no pressure...sir."

"Well then, with that out of the way," Leopold continued, letting go of Shezu's shoulder, "let's show you around the base, shall we?"

Shezu was given a tour of what would be his new home. First, was the dining hall. It was in the center of the compound on the left side of the middle tower, a rectangular building with a triangle roof. The windows were stained glass, with each one showing the Crimson Lion's insignia in bright red and orange. The wooden table and benches were all lined up, with four rows of them. The wall were decorated with weapons, animal heads, and scraps of cloth. Presumed trophies from won battles. The rules of the kitchen were simple, if you wanted to eat, you had to make it yourself. There even a few members of the Lions in there. Next, was the training area, that was opposite of the dining hall. It was a large open field, with training dummies and even a few sparring arenas for mages to fight in. Behind it were the baths. There were two, one for the men, and one for the women. The bath was a large rectangular pool, being fed by a lion head that had water constantly streaming from its mouth. The building it was in had solid stone pillars supporting the roof, while the steam of the bath would escape from square holes at the top of the walls. This was where the members were supposed to get clean after a hard training session… or just get clean in general. In between the dining hall and the training field was the stone tower, where the captain of the Crimson Lion's resided.

"Now then, time to show you your room," Leopold said, leading Shezu to the large structures at the front of the entrance. He brought him to the building on the left side, bringing him to a door on the third level.

"This, is where you'll be sleeping. Use this day to settle in and get rested up… trust me, you'll need it."

Leopold told all this to Shezu with a devilish grin, all the while handing him a key. With that, the tour was over, and the brother started to go on his way. Shezu noticed that the number of his room was thirty seven, but not only that, he also saw the symbol on his door under it. It had the letter 'J' with the number five right next to it.

"Excuse me, but what does this symbol mean," he said, pointing to it.

"Oh, that just the symbol of your rank as a magic knight," Leopold responded.

"Ah, I see...so what rank does this symbol mean?"

"It means Junior Magic Knight, fifth class, the lowest rank there is."

"Well, better get to changing that huh?"

"Heh, yeah...better get to it."

With a chuckle and a smirk, Leopold went on his way, leaving Shezu all on his own. Opening the door, Shezu got a first look at what would be his new room. It was a medium sized room with a red and orange diamond pattern on the walls that had quite a bit of space to it. There was a bed with red sheets to the right of the door, with a square, clear window opposite of it. Beside the bed, there was really nothing else in there, not even a wardrobe to put his clothes in… or a rug, leaving the wooden floor barren. Shezu unpacked everything he had and put it into the left corner, including his pen-tail's cage. Unlocking the latch on the window, he opened it up, taking in the blue sky, fresh air, and looking forward to what tomorrow will bring.

 **Notes:** Another chapter done. Given that the Crimson Lion's base hasn't been shown yet, I tried my best to give it it's own feel and a few cool elements of its own. Until next time.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: The Night Shift

* * *

The sun was just starting to light up the sky when Shezu heard the thumping on his door. It was a thunderous BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! Shezu's eyes cracked open.

"Come on recruit, up and at'em!"

Despite his grogginess, the young man could definitely tell that the voice belonged to Leopold.

" _Ugh, I don't think even the roosters are up at this hour,"_ Shezu thought to himself.

Dragging himself out of bed, he slipped on an outfit of a brown shirt, black pants and shoes. He also made sure his pen-tail's was fed and his cage was clean. After checking all those off his to do list, he headed out the door, making sure it was locked behind him. From what he saw, the members of the squad were all heading out of their rooms and streaming into the dining hall. As such, Shezu followed the crowd. This, in hindsight, was not a good idea, as the crowd seemed to clog up at the main entrance. But once someone got through the wall of people, it was usually smooth. Seeing what was through the doors, Shezu saw a mass of people going about. There were at least forty or fifty members in there. Of course, with so many people trying to get their breakfast at once, it was a bit of a struggle for the newest member to get his. Some people had plates with egg and steaming ham on them, while other looked like they already eaten and were just waiting around. In the end, Shezu settled for just snatching an apple off the nearest fruit basket and munching on it.

" _Note to self, remember to try to wake up earlier to get ahead of the crowd."_

As everyone found their seats, the captain Fuegoleon himself came to the the very head of the dining hall.

"Alright everyone, I'm going to be giving you your assignments for the day!"

Pulling out a piece of slate, he started listing off all the member and what their job for the day would be. Some were given solo missions, while others were grouped together on larger tasks. As each of the Knights were given their tasks, they got up and left.

"Leopold! You are to show our newest recruit Shezu here what his duties for the day will be. Then, you are to report back to me."

After he said the words, both Leo and Shezu got up and walked to meet each other outside the dining hall.

"So...what's my assignment for the day?"

"Heh, just follow me recruit."

Both of the Knights went around the dining hall to the back of it. Behind the hall was a large shed with a water pump on the side. Leopold opened the doors to it and started to rummage around inside. When he finished, he came out with a mop, a bucket, and a brush.

"Here you go," Leopold said, handing off the cleaning items to Shezu, "make sure you get every spot and dish inside the dining hall."

* * *

 _Dear Mom and Dad, I'm happy to write that my days at the Crimson Lions are going well. While I'm still the newcomer to the group, It seems like I'm starting to be accepted...albeit slowly. The work I do here gives me a sense of purpose, and helps me keep going forward. I hope things are going well back home, and that you two are managing to take care of yourselves. I'll try my best to find out when I can come visit you guys, but with how busy I am, it seems it might not be for a while._

 _Sincerely, Shezu._

* * *

Fow the past week, all Shezu knew was cleaning. Morning, noon, and night, he would be tasked with cleaning the dining hall. Scrubbing away jam stains, picking the crumbs off the floor, making sure not a single dish was left. These were all things he was responsible for doing. Not only that, but he was also responsible for maintaining both the bathhouse and training field. Noon and night, he would have to clear the water in the bath house in order to make sure no mold would grow. On the training field, he would have to restuff the dummies, or in most cases, get a new dummy altogether, since some would get incinerated entirely. They had an entire storehouse of training dummies, right next to the broom holder for the mages to use for flight. When he wasn't doing that, Shezu would often be responsible for clearing out weeds, sweeping up leaves, or polishing the front gate. This left him with little free time naturally, all of which he spent reading the books he brought from home. Until one day, during the usual morning meeting.

"Leopold! You are to bring the new recruit Shezu with you and patrol the area around Liefern graveyard. There have been reports of graverobbers raiding graveyards in the outer realm. It's believed that that graveyard will be next. Take time to prepare."

Shezu honestly couldn't believe it...his first mission. He was in such excitement that he didn't notice Leopold walking up to him.

"Oye, recruit."

This snapped Shezu out of his daze.

"Uh, yes...sir?"

"You've got five minute to prepare, after that, meet me out at the front gate with a broom."

"Err, yes sir."

With that, Shezu made a beeline for his room. There was still only a bed in it, so he didn't have a lot of tools at his disposal. Scrounging what he could, he fished out a pouch of coins.

" _Well, this_ _ **is**_ _my emergency money just in case...but eh, I might get hungry."_

Stuffing the pouch in his pocket, he then made sure his grimoire was fastened on tight, that he had a full water pouch handy, and then he was out the door. Stopping by the broom holder next to the training dummy storage house, he then headed straight to the front entrance, where Leopold was waiting for him.

"Got what you need?" Leo said in a neutral voice.

"Uh, yeah."

"Heh, then let's go."

Leopold spoke his name to the door, and thus, it opened up. However, as soon as they were both past the gate, Shezu noticed something.

"Hey, uh, sir? Where's your broom?"

Leopold just gave a devilish smile and replied, "Heh, don't need one."

As soon as he finished the sentence, fire started to swirl around him, forming together into a large fire lion.

"Try and keep up recruit!"

With that, Leo shot off. His mount raced through the streets, twisted around corners, and even climbed over some buildings until it was into the forest. This made Shezu recall the time Fuegoleon saved him and his underling, also riding in on his own fire lion. The only difference between the two was the size of the mane.

" _Huh, guess they really are brothers."_

Mounting his broomstick, Shezu began to fly through the air, making sure that the brother was within eye-shot so that he could follow behind him.

* * *

The pair arrived at Liefern just as the sun was setting, making a few stops on the way to eat and go to the bathroom. It was a small little village, even smaller than the village Shezu came from. The Kingdom of Clover was divided into three realms. The noble realm, the common realm, and the outer realm. It was the realm where Leopold and Shezu were where peasants lived, the poorest citizens of the clover kingdom. It showed, as the people there wore dirty clothes with holes in them, as if they were the only clothes they had. Both Magic Knights walked through the streets of the village until they finally saw the graveyard come into view. What marked it was the giant church that rose up above all the tombstones. Shezu and Leopold got even closer to the graveyard, until Leo stopped and started to look around. He finally pointed to a hill that overlooked the area they were supposed to patrol.

"There, we'll stake out the place from there."

The graveyard itself was honestly quite modest. Just rows and rows of tombstones in an open field. As the sun started to set, casting everything into shadow, the pair of Knights settled down. They both laid on their bellies and watched the graveyard like hawks. Though focused on his task, Shezu tried to break the awkward silence that was between them the whole trip.

"So...uh, what made the captain think that **this** was the next target...sir?"

"Well recruit, there have been a string of grave robbing incidents lately. What's odd about them is that they have **all** taken place in the outer realm. Probably where no one would notice, or no one **strong** enough to stop them at least."

"Well sure, but **why** here sir?"

"To be honest recruit, this is only one in a **handful** of places where they could strike. The captain put a bunch of other Magic Knights at different locations, just in case."

"...you know, my name isn't **recruit** , it's actually…"

"In any case, we just need to be stationed here, just for a couple of nights. Until then, we'll be like lions ourselves, and wait in ambush until our prey arrives."

"...you know sir, from what I read about lions, it's actually the **females** that go hunting, not the…"

"Quiet recruit! We need to be vigilant."

"...I told you, my name isn't recruit," Shezu muttered under his breath.

* * *

Shezu's eyes were starting to drop as he continued to watch over the graveyard, looking out for any signs of suspicious movement. Leopold was asleep right next to them, as they both agreed taking shifts would be more beneficial to them. At the moment, all Shezu could think to himself was, " _thank goodness that I ate and went to the bathroom before I got here."_

But just as he finished that thought, he noticed movement down below him. There were a couple or so lanterns down there, and the light form them showed at least half a dozen people. Shaking his partner, he tried to wake him back up.

"Hey Leo. Leo! Get up."

Leopold stopped snoring, snapping himself awake.

"Huh! Wha-what's happening?!"

"Down there," pointed Shezu, gesturing toward the moving figures. Leo took notice, and immediately sprang into action.

"Come on, let's take a closer look."

He moved forward and started to slide down the hill, Shezu following after him. As they both moved closer, they could hear the sound of shovels scraping against dirt, and the mumbiling of voices.

"Errr, why do **we** have to be on corpse picking duty?!"

"Oh shut up and just finish up. The sooner we get done, the sooner we can leave."

From the sounds of it, it was a man and a woman. The man was complaining about the work, while the women was the one telling him to suck it up. The pair was right in front of Shezu and Leopold, one was in a hole in front of a gravestone while the other was holding a lantern above him, giving her partner light to see. Not only that, but there were **multiple** pairs of graverobbers, one digging a hole, while a few others were holding lanterns, giving light. Given all the evidence, Leopold was sure they caught their culprits. He sprang forward, shouting at the top of his lungs, "stop right there!"

Everyone in the graveyard turned to the voice. Leopold brought out his grimoire, and flames started to come out of his hands, both providing light that showed everyone in the area, and to also show that he was ready for a fight.

"So, you're the ones pillaging our graveyards! Give up now, and I won't burn you **too** badly."

Shezu, meanwhile, was just looking on from where Leopold was formerly hiding.

" _Dang it, why'd he have to go and charge in like that! Well, we saw the priest leave for his house for the night, so he should be out of harm's way. So, might as well…"_

The new Magic Knight followed his companions example, and sprang forward behind, also bringing out his grimoire for battle.

All the robbers there froze, but only for a moment, as the man in the hole in front of them started to chuckle.

"Well, well, well, Magic Knights! Heh, and here I thought that this job would be boring."

The man digging the hole practically jumped out of it.

"Eh well, I guess it was inevitable," spoke his female companion in an uncaring tone, "when you grave rob dozens of graves, someone's bound to catch on."

Judging from the man's tone of voice and behavior, he wasn't planning on surrendering anytime soon. Not only that, but oddly enough, his fellow companions at the other graves continued digging. It was as if they didn't even notice that Shezu and Leopold was there. As the man continued to advance on the pair of Knights, he removed the brown cloak that covered his body. He had dark red hair, a strong square jaw, blue eyes, arm hair, and a very muscular body. His clothes were black boots, dark blue pants, and a purple shirt.

"So, am I correct in assuming that you will take care of this," spoke the female once again.

"Yep, pretty much," the male partner spoke, with a grin on his face.

The woman sighed, and said, "very well, then I guess I'll just finish up here. Don't take too long Muskel, or we'll both leave, whether you want to or not."

"Eh, don't worry about it Heu, this won't even take a moment."

" _Muskel, and Heu. At least we have some names,"_ Shezu thought. Just as Heu was leaving, one of the figures in the black cloaks came up and grabbed her lantern for her. Just as the light passed over the cloaked figures face, Shezu swore that he saw no face at all, just…

" _Is that, straw…?"_

But Shezu quickly threw the thought out of his mind, ne needed to focus on the man in front of him.

"Now then Magic Knights...," Muskel said, as his grimoire started to float in front of him, glowing with mana. Both Shezu and Leopold got ready, squatting down and preparing to do battle

"...please do try to put up a fight, otherwise the only thing I'll die from will be **boredom**."

 **Notes:** Another chapter done! Next chapter, get ready for some action! By the way, for anyone wondering what a pen-tail looks like just look up an image for a white-throated needletail and you'll have a pretty good visual. Until next time.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Battle Among the Tombstones

* * *

Shezu and Leopold were staring down their opponent, and vice versa, while Heu and her...companions continued their work of diggin up the graves. Muskel brought out his grimoire in front of him, as mana began to surge around him, preparing to attack. The two members of the Crimson Lions did the same, Leo channeling fire in his palms while Shezu...well Shezu

" _The best… well_ only, _attack spell I have up my sleeve is hitting someone with a mass of hardened blood. Not to mention I have to get in pretty close to do it,"_ he thought to himself.

" _Well if all else fails, I can at least use my blood shield to defend myself."_

Soon, a crackling sound could be heard, and as both of the young men looked towards the source, they saw what was causing it. Hard, white substances were forming around Muskel's fists, practically turning his hands into solid rock.

"You know what I enjoy the most in life? Watching these white fists of mine get stained **red.** "

 **Salt magic: White Knuckle Guard**

The entire top of Muskel's hands and forearm were covered in solid white rock, and it was with that that he lept towards the magic knights. Leo shot out a torrent of flames at him with one hand, but Muskel just dodged, rolling of to the side. Continuing forward, he raised his right fist, ready to strike it to the ground. Both Shezu and Leopold saw it coming, and dashed to the side, avoiding the blow. But that didn't stop dirt and grass from being flung into the air, as the enemy's blow made a dent in the earth itself. Muskel then took a moment to get a good look at who he was fighting.

" _Hmm judging from their appearance…"_ he then rushed toward Leopold, " _ **you**_ _would be more fun to crush."_

Right then, a flurry of blows were exchanged between the two combatants. Muskel was in close, so any long-range attack Leopold could use against him were useless. Every time Leopold launched a flaming punch towards him, he would simply dodge out of the way, or simply just block it with his forearm guard. While on the other side, Leo was doing everything he could to dodge his opponents blows, seeing the devastating power behind them. But he could only maneuver for so long, as one of the strikes gazed his cheek, leaving a stinging feeling on Leo's face.

" _Oh no, he's in trouble,"_ observed Shezu, seeing the fight before him, " _but now...I might just have a chance!"_

Seeing the opportunity before him, Shezu lept to took it. Remembering the feeling he had when he knocked out his opponent during the Magic Knight exams, he tried to summon his hardened blood ball again. Luckily, he was in combat, with an opponent who **definitely** had an intention to kill. Because of this, he was able to summon it more easily. As he closed the distance between Muskel and him, he positioned himself to be right behind the adversary, hoping to strike him behind a head for a knockout blow. Unfortunately, the salt magic user noticed him. Just as Shezu stroke his arm through the air to have his blood ball hit him, the attacker spun around, and **punched** the hardened ball away. There was a sharp crack in the air, as pieces of blood and salt were strewn all over the area. This shocked Shezu, and his body immediately jumped away in reflex to what just happened. Looking, as his blood ball, Shezu noticed that it was cracked with a good **chunk** missing.

"Well, well, well…"

Shezu looked to Muskel, who was the one speaking. While looking at him, he noticed that his salt armor was also cracked, with a few pieces missing, exposing flesh. But that didn't last for long, as mana began to flow around his arms, and the armor began to repair itself! The salt started to build itself back, covering the once exposed skin, and making the armor whole again.

"...seems like **you** want to be the one to die first!"

With that, he rushed towards Shezu. The young man's fight or flight instincts kicked in, and he immediately put up a shield of blood in order to protect himself from the incoming attack.

 **Blood Manipulation Magic: Red Guard**

A circular shield floated in front of Shezu, however it was much smaller than the first time he used it, given that a good portion of his blood was knocked away. But despite that, it could still protect him. Muskel knocked back his fist and then brought it slamming forward, hitting the shield head on. The force of his punch was so powerful, that it knocked the shield straight into Shezu, who had to brace himself against it. He even started to slide against the ground the attack was that strong! But the shield still held.

" _Damn! I thought the guy looked strong, but even still, he shouldn't be_ _ **this**_ _strong."_

And that was all the time Shezu had to think, because just as he finished that thought, Muskel landed another blow against the shield. And another, and another, and another. Just one mighty strike after the other one. Despite all the force against it, the shield still held, but Shezu himself was practically pushed until his back was against a tree. Noticing his position, the blood mage was able to quickly figure out his opponents plan.

"Hah, hah! One magic knight sandwich coming up!"

Laughing while rearing back his fist, Muskel prepared to hit the shield so hard that it would smush whoever was behind it up against the tree. Reacting quickly Shezu leapt and rolled out of the way, taking his blood shield with him. Instead of hitting his intended target, Muskel instead hit the tree. The wood cracked under the weight of the blow, and gravity did the rest of the work with brining the tree down with a mighty boom. Shezu barely had any time to stand up from the ground when the salt mage went in for another hit. The boy was able to bring up his shield to protect him, but his lack of stable footing made that fact almost mute. Once again he was braced up against the shield, only this time he was flung into the air and quickly fell back down to the earth. Now he was laying on the ground. From the corner of his eye he could see his foe starting to come at him.

" _Oh damn! He couldn't smash me against the tree, now he's going to smash me against the ground!"_

From the way Muskel prepared to attack, it made sense. He raised his fist like it was a hammer, preparing to bring it down on Shezu. He probably would have down it again and again, until either the shield broke, or Shezu did. Thankfully, Leopold intervened. A jet of fire shot out at Muskel, but he was able to block it by bringing both of his arms together to form a shield of sorts. It practically blocked out the flames altogether.

"Don't you ignore me," shouted Leopold, with a look of defiance on his face and both of his arms ablaze.

"Heh, as you wish."

With that Muskel lept once again towards Leopold, exchanging a series of blows once more. Shezu, meanwhile, was still just laying on the ground. All he could do for the moment was watch the fight from the sidelines. To watch, and think. He looked back to his blood ball, which was still missing chunks from when it got punched, and decided that was the first thing he should fix. Looking around for the missing chunks, he finally found them, just not in the condition he expected. What would have been large solid, chunks of blood, were now nothing bet wet stains on the grass.

" _Wait? But wh-"_ Shezu started thinking, but quickly came to the answer on his own, " _Oh no! Because it was seperated from my magical source of energy, it must have reverted back to its original state"_

Looking back at the brawl between Leopold and Muskel, the Magic Knight was holding his own, but not for long. He was getting tired, getting sluggish, making mistakes. More and more was Muskel able to graze the Crimson Lion, even making a few tears in his sleeves. Sheazu knew in his gut that it was just a matter of time until the salt mage got a good hit on him, and that would not end well. Thinking up a storm, Shezu tried to think up what he could possibly do. Then, it hit him

" _Maybe, if I try using my mana on it again, it will come back to me."_

Sticking his left hand out towards the blood-stain, he focused his mana into it, trying to make the blood come back to him. While doing so, he could feel a drip onto his right hand, where the blood ball was. Looking to it, he saw that it was starting to **melt** , the hardened blood turning into its previously liquid form.

" _Oh no no no! Not what I want!"_

Shifting focus away from the blood back to the ball, he was quickly able to make the blood go back to the hard mass and form back up. He was even able to get the blood that stained his clothes!

" _Well, at least I won't have to worry about bloody noses staining my clothes anymore."_

Once again looking back to the stain, he tried once again to call the blood back to him.

" _Alright Shezu, come on! Try to will the blood to come back, but don't lose focus on the hardened blood you already have, otherwise that will melt too."_

It was at this moment Shezu discovered what multi-tasking was, as what he was trying to do was similar to writing in a book with one hand, while holding **another** book up with the other. It was tricky at first, but he soon got the hang of it, as the blood on the ground **slowly** started to bead up and go towards Shezu. Being drawn in like a magnet. However, Shezu noticed that by the time that the blood would have reach him, Leopold would already be dead. He was sweating, breathing hard, and had at least several places where he was bleeding from. He wasn't going to last long. This made Shezu sweat, as he tried to find the solution.

" _Damn it! By the time this blood reaches me, it will be to late and… wait a minute."_

Inspired once again, Shezu stopped willing the blood towards him and instead tried for another goal, to make it hard. He closed his eyes, and tried his hardest to visualize his desire. He tried to see the blood coming hard, stiff, sharp...all through his eyelids. Peaking to see if he'd done it, he saw that the blood stopped moving, and indeed became solid just as he desired. Now that he knew what he was capable of, he rushed over to Leopold, to tell him of his plan.

* * *

Leopold was not holding up well. He had multiple scraps across his body, some very deep and bleeding. They were along his arms, shoulders, face, anywhere where his enemy tried to hit him. Muskel on the other hand, was doing just fine. There wasn't a single scratch on him, but seeing his opponent in such a disheveled state did bring an amused smile to his face.

"Well, it's been fun little kitty, but no-"

But just as muskel was about to finish his sentence, and more importantly, Leopold, he heard someone behind him yell.

"Over Here!"

Muskel turned to see Shezu running at him, blood ball in the air, ready to strike. However, he was more than ready to counter said attack.

"Funny, boy! I thought you would remember what happened last ti-"

But once again, he was cut short, as Shezu instead ducked **under** the throw that Muskel threw at him. He then rolled on the ground, and popped up standing right next to Leopold.

"Alright Leopold, listen, I-"

But Leopold didn't listen to him. Not one bit. It was almost as if he didn't hear him at all.

"Look here recruit, you need to get out of here, as soon as possible!"

"Wait...wha-"

"Just run away as fast as you can! I'll try to hold him off!"

"Leo-I mean sir, there's no need for something that drama-"

"Just run recruit! Save Yourself!"

"No, you're not listen-"

"Just Go!"

"Sir-"

"GO!"

"WOULD YOU JUST LISTEN TO ME!"

Shezu's sudden outburst had everyone shocked, even the person who was trying to kill him. Muskel had in fact spent the entire time just looking at the pair of them, since Leopold was watching him like a hawk and would be wary if he tried to attack them.

"Look," Shezu said with an expression of annoyance on his face, "there's a way we can beat him without either of us getting killed."

"Really?"

"Well...yes."

"Well speak up then, let's hear it!"

"Internal Screaming"

* * *

Muskel was watching the two boys with a look of absolute suspicion. They had been whispering things into each other ear for a good moment, and he **knew** they were planning something. Once they stopped taking, and focused their eyes back on him, he prepared himself for whatever they were planning.

" _Eh, doesn't matter, I'll squash them either way."_

Both Leopold and Shezu then rushed towards Muskel, making it seem they planned to overwhelm them with a combined attack. However, when Muskel tried to use his protected forearm in order to swat them aside, they simply ducked and rolled under the attack once again.

"STOP doing that!"

Leopold and Shezu then started backing up, trying to put some space between them and their opponent. It didn't work, as Muskel simply closed the distance with a single leap, striking at the Magic Knights. Both of them simply decided to dodge said attacks, never counterattacking. Muskel then switched his tactics, deciding to divide and conquer. He focused on Leopold first, deeming him the bigger threat. It was back to the old routine, a ballad of blows between the two, with Muskel never getting a scratch. However, there was **one** small difference.

" _Have to keep my eye out for that blood user, in case he tries to get me from behind again."_

Muskel kept shooting quick shots at Shezu, giving the minimum amount of focus he would need in order to be aware of him. It paid off as Shezu rushed in for a sneak attack. But the attack was to no avail, as Muskel simply block it with his forearm guard, sending shards of hardened blood flying everywhere once again. Shezu backed off, and Leopold stepped in, as he attack the salt mage with a sense of renewed vigor. Muskel was able to block the attacks, but once again the blood mage tried to hit him from behind. He tried this again, and again, and again, until it finally started getting annoying. Even Leopold was managing to get in a few grazes with how good a **distraction** shezu was being, managing to give muskel a slight burn across the cheek. Shezu went in for another sneak attack, at this point his blood ball was so whittled down it didn't even splinter off blood anymore. It was this one that finally got Muskel to crack.

"DAMN YOU LITTLE FLY! Stop doing that!"

"Sorry...it's just that with the way you bragged earlier, I thought you would've finished us off already."

Shezu was saying these words in as cheeky a voice as possible, which made a vein start to bulge in the salt mage's head.

"To be perfectly honest, the only ones who are going to die of **boredom** here are us!"

That was the straw that broke the camel's back, Muskel abandoned Leopold completely and came charging at Shezu like a mad bull.

"Oh you **are** going to die kid! It just won't be from boredom!"

But Muskel should have paid more attention to his surroundings, as he was charging not only at Shezu, but at the large pool of blood that the mage was trying to get to come back to him. Timing it just when his opponent would step over it, Shezu held out his right hand and put all his concentration onto the puddle of blood. He but so much into it that the blood ball he previously had just melted back into blood like ice into water. Put the sacrifice was worth it, because just as muskel stepped on the blood it hardened and sharpened into a nail. A nail that pierced the salt mage's foot.

 **Blood Manipulation Magic: Crimson Spike**

Muskel felt the sharp pain pierce his foot, as he froze from the sudden shock. That moment was all the Magic Knights needed, as Shezu yelled with all of his might, "Leopold now!"

Leopold sprang into action with that call, and rushed towards Muskel with his arms ablaze with flames. As he rushed towards the graverobber, he recalled the conversation that Shezu and him whispered to each other.

" _Wait so, how am I supposed to hit him with my fire magic. He's practically untouchable."_

" _Yes, but if we catch him off-guard, that should leave him open to any attack."_

" _But attacks from behind don't even work How are we supposed to catch him off guard?"_

" _I'll tell you how, just make sure that when we_ do _, you hit him with everything you got._

Leopold gave a little sly smile, seeing the new recruit's cleverness in action. Muskel on the other hand, was **not** smiling. **Not smiling at all.** Not only was he still recovering from the shock of the sudden pain, but he couldn't even turn around **fully** to defense against the blow, lest he literally **tear** his foot from the spike. In short, he was fu #$. Leopold raised both his arms to strike, gathering all the mana that he could, making it look like he was surrounded by a forest fire. He then released it all at once, with a single double-palm strike, right into the person who thought that this would be a walk in the park.

 **Flame Creation Magic: Flame Cannon**

"How's **this** for boredom!"

 **Notes:** Another chapter done! It was writing this chapter that I figured out how tricky action scenes are to write. Well, next chapter, things will **hopefully** get wrapped up. Till next time.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Thief in the Night

* * *

Both Leopold and Shezu were panting heavily from the battle. It either came from exhaustion, fear of the situation, the joy that they were able to pull there plan off, or a combination of all three. Regardless, they were the ones standing, while there foe was on the ground.

"He, he, he-have to admit recruit, I didn't think that plan of yours would work," Leopold said/panted out while wearing a half-grin.

"Well to be honest, neither did I. And for the last time, call me-"

But before Shezu could finish his sentence, he heard a growl come up from the ground.

"Grrr… you… brats!"

Both of the Magic Knights looked in shock to the owner of the voice, as he started to pick himself off the ground while shooting the nastiest look of anger at the two boys. If looks could kill, his would've speared there heads. Shezu, at this point, was in a panic.

" _WHAT! Who? When? How did he-"_

But before he could finish the thought, he saw the answer to his question. Underneath the scorch mark where Leopold's attack landed and practically burned a hole through Muskel's clothes, he saw a glimmer of white.

" _Oh damn,"_ Shezu cursed, " _when leopold hit him with his attack, he must have formed a layer of that salt armor_ _ **under**_ _his clothes. It must have protected him from the flames, while the_ _ **force**_ _of the attack must have knocked him back. Him skidding along the ground is probably what put the flames out."_

Whatever Shezu though however, it really didn't matter in the end, as it was clear that any understanding of what had happened wasn't going to change that fact that the boys were in **trouble**.

"Well, well, well. Seems like I underestimated you little pieces of filth."

Every word Muskel spoke was seething with rage and hatred. The fact that he had been humiliated so was bad enough, but the fact that it was by people so **young** only made his anger magnify. Shezu was absolutely frozen. His plan had not worked, and he did **not** have a back-up. All he could do was stand still with a face of fear. Leopold on the other hand had a slightly different response. He was still struck with fear, but he did at least conjure some flames around his arms, for the fat amount of good doing **that** would do.

"So you think you can make a fool out of me! Well, I'll…"

"Muskel! Enough!"

The female voice cut through the air like a knife, severing the tension. All the boys looked over to the one who spoke. It was Hue, the other mage that was helping with the grave robbing. She was still wearing her cloak, thus making it difficult to get a good look at her. Not to mention that there was someone else behind her, cloaked in shadows.

"Come on Muskel, we're done here."

This made Shezu look around the graveyard. The battle with Muskel took **all** of his attention, making him blind to his surroundings. As he looked, the magic night noticed that practically everyone was gone. All the fellow people that were helping Muskel and Hue disappeared, along with all the bodies they were digging up. Which all that was left were the five people there, and a mass of empty graves.

"WHAT! Are you kidding me Hue! You think I'm just going to let these children-"

"Muskel...is this something you really want to fight me on?"

Hue shot the coldest look someone could give to another person, and the tone of her voice made it clear that she was being serious. Muskel gave a grunt of protest, but still obeyed her commands.

"Looks like I'll just have to slaughter you later Magic Knights."

Before either of the boys could try to stop them, a black portal opened up behind the mysterious woman, and Muskel, Hue, and there companion all disappeared into it. In what seemed like a split second, only Shezu and Leo were left there, at the empty graveyard that was silent as the night.

* * *

Both of the magic knights reported back to there captain at the HQ as soon as they possibly could. They gave a fully detailed report about what they saw, what they did, and the implications that it could entail.

"Are you two sure of what you saw," questioned Fuego, standing in front of both Shezu and Leo?

"Yes, they were definitely **stealing** corpses, not robbing from them," responded Leo.

Fuego Leon gave a look of contemplation, pondering what the actions of the grave robbers could possibly imply.

"Hrrm, for now, I will take with the other magic squad captains. We need to get extra protection around the graveyards to make sure no more of our dead are stolen. Meanwhile, you two go and rest, good job."

Fuego gave a nod of approval, while Leo and Shezu gave a smile and salute in return. Both of the members then left the tower by taking the stone platform down. It was a magical item that used mana to power it, and was the only way to reach the top of the tower. A stone pillar was in the middle of the platform, and a mage placing their hand on a ring of runes on top and injecting mana would make it go up. A lower ring of runes would make the platform go down. Leo was the one making the platform go down, all the while talking to Shezu.

"Man, stealing corpses, just what could a person want with a dead body," asked Shezu, ruminating on the events he observed.

"I don't know," replied Leo, "but to be perfectly honest, I don't even want to think about it."

"Yeah," replied Shezu, both he and Leo shuddering at the implications. While leaving the tower, the new Magic Knight recruit headed off to his cabin, but not before his senior stopped him.

"Hey recruit, wait up!"

Shezu gave a look of irritation, still chafing at only being known as 'recruit.' Leopold ran up to him, eager to talk.

"What is it?"

"Just wanted to say that the plan you came up with in the graveyard was pretty clever,if i do say so myself."

"Oh, well thank-"

"So tell me recruit, where do you-"

But before Leopold could finish, Shezu finally snapped.

"Alright enough! Stop calling me recruit, I have a name. It's Shezu, Shezu Ichor, and I'd prefer it if you called me that."

Leopold was actually dumbstruck both from the sudden outburst, and the fact that a new recruit had the courage to say that to a superior. However, the only thing Shezu was feeling was instant regret.

" _Crap, maybe I shouldn't have-"_

"Heh, so it seem you **DO** have some fire in you."

The who was dumbstruck this time was Shezu, as Leopold didn't seem angry at all. In fact, he almost seemed pleasantly surprised.

"So tell me Shezu, where do you come from?"

"Uh, from a village called Hause in the commoner realm. I used to live in Dresden before, well, **things** happened."

"Hrm, I see."

Leopold had guessed that the new recruit had come from either the outer realm or commoner realm, judging by his attire.

"Well, in any case, I hope we are able to team up again," Leopold said while spinning around to leave, "see you later Shezu!"

All the blood-mage could do was look on in confusion, as the sun started to set on his first adventure.

* * *

From that day forward, it was back to the usual, which was cleaning and maintaining the premises. However if there was one difference, it was Leopold. At the morning meetings, he would always call out to Shezu and save a seat for him to sit at. But other than that it was business as usual, until…

* * *

It was the middle of the night, the moon was full and high in the sky, with only a few clouds crossing it. Shezu suddenly jerked awake, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"Bathroom.." he mumbled

Dragging himself out of bed and into a pair of slippers, he unlocked his door and ventured outside while in his white cotton pajamas. The bathrooms were behind the dining hall, opposite of the baths. Shezu entered the side for the boys and got his business done. Walking back to his room, he suddenly heard the scrapping of cloth against stone. In the silence of the night, he looked around to see if he could find the source of the sound. Looking up, he could see a dark figure climbing down the tower of the headquarters. At first he thought it was his eyes playing tricks on him. Rubbing them once more, he approached the tower, hoping to get a closer look. But to his shock, he realized that no, it was not his eyes playing tricks on him. There really was someone climbing down the tower. The tower of the Crimson Lions is where the captain resided, bed and all, so one could only guess what one trying to sneak out of it means. The shadow kept climbing lower and lower, using the stones as hand holds, until it finally it got low enough to jump backwards and land on top of the female room's roof. It was only then by the light of the moon, that Shezu got a full look at the intruder. It was a man, dressed in a jester's outfit with a harlequin mask. The outfit consisted of a red hood with three black ears of fabric. The body was covered in a red shirt and pants with black boots, while a leather sash of the same color covered the waist that held two daggers. There were what seemed to be black feathers coming out of the shirt, with black sleeves and gloves. The mask was white with a red crest over the eyes, and a red arrowhead in the middle of the forehead. Shezu looked in surprise for a moments, until he saw a necklace with a stone at the end of it. It was the same necklace that captain Fuego Leone had! It was then that Shezu remembered how to talk.

"Hey where did you-"

But before he could even finish, the thief sprinted across the roof, and was able to make a full clear jump over the spiked fence that surrounded the compound, rolling into safety. Shezu knew his time was short. Reaching out his hand, mana started to glow around it as he summoned his grimoire to him. Luckily for him, he didn't close his door all the way, so it was left a little ajar. This gave enough room for the grimoire to slip between it and fly right into the owner's hand. Shezu made a sprint for the gate, speaking his name opening it up. With that he dashed through, even going so far as to slip between it as soon as the chance allowed him. With that he was off, chasing the thief in the night while still in his white pajamas and slippers.

 **Notes:** Another one done! So sorry that this one took so long! But like I said before...life, tends to slow things down. Don't worry though, still haven't given up on this story! Until next time.


End file.
